NORTH PENN SCHOOL DISTRICT

The Bulletin Board Newsletter

A monthly e-newsletter highlighting the discussions, decisions and business of the North Penn School District Board of School Directors.
The North Penn School Board (NPSB) welcomes questions and feedback from the community. To that end, community members may email the entire board at _npschoolboard@npenn.org.

If you would like to contact a specific board member via email or phone, please visit our website to find contact information.
Board Members

Tina Stoll, President
Christian D. Fusco, Vice President
Elisha K. Gee, Ed.D.
Jonathan M. Kassa
Wanda Lewis-Campbell, Ed.D.
Timothy MacBain
Juliane Ramić
Al Roesch
Cathy Wesley

Letter to the Community

Christian Fusco



Term Expiration: 2025

Dear North Penn Community,


One of the reasons why North Penn is among the perennial top schools ranked in the nation by US News and World Report is the multitude of course offerings the district is able to provide to students. This year, our students are taking Anatomy II, Leadership in Today’s Society, Guitar Lab and Environmental Science for the first time. In addition, 94 students are currently enrolled in the district’s new Community Hosted Internship Program or CHIP as it is popularly known. This exciting new program offers high school students the opportunity to explore careers and even intern with local businesses, companies and industries.  


With those programs off the ground, the district has turned its attention to planning for the 2023-2024 school year. Newly proposed course offerings will provide a strong foundation for both college and career readiness as they are designed to peak the interests of our students and meet the needs of a 21st century workforce. 

Four years ago, North Penn was only able to offer five dual enrollment options for college bound students. Today, we offer 15 courses with more on the horizon. There are over 2200 student enrollments this year alone, potentially allowing students to earn up to three semesters worth of college credit before they graduate from North Penn. Dual enrollment courses allow students to get a jump on earning college credits, saving them thousands of dollars in tuition expenses. The proposed new course offerings will continue to build on that success with two new classes: Math Applications and International Relations.

Math Applications is offered in partnership with Montgomery County Community College. It is designed for Liberal Arts, Social Science, Humanities, Secondary Education and Communication majors. Math Applications is a course commonly required in the first year at Montgomery County Community College.


The second dual enrollment course is instructed through a new partnership with the University of Pittsburgh. This exciting new class is offered at the 6.0 level and will focus on international relations in the areas of war, political economy, nuclear proliferation and terrorism. In an increasingly globalized world it is important to cultivate tomorrow’s international leaders, and where better to find those folks than right here in our own community!


For those students who will graduate with an eye to vocational training programs and the working world, there are new course offerings in Hospitality Management, Financial Applications with Technology and Performance Management.


Hospitality Management is a semester-long business elective with a focus on hotel, restaurant, resort, country club, catering and conference center management. 


Performance Management, a Social Studies elective for 11th and 12th grade, takes a critical look at the factors that influence one’s abilities to succeed in academics, creative pursuits, work performance and leadership roles by providing practical methods of addressing adversity, anxiety and stress. 


Financial Applications with Technology, a full year course at the 5.0 level, is a class every student could benefit from taking. Topics covered include dealing with percentages, fractions, payroll, taxes and insurance, simple and compound interest, consumer credit, mortgages, annuities, stocks, bonds, depreciation and financial statements.  


Finally, Guitar Lab II and American Sign Language are new courses designed to address the array of interests of our student body. Guitar Lab II, which was created out of a huge demand for Guitar Lab I, expands North Penn’s vaunted musical programming options to high school students, many of whom missed out on learning an instrument in their elementary and middle school years.


Close to my heart is our newest elective in the World Language department, American Sign Language. This class will instruct students in introductory sign language skills and vocabulary as they sharpen their receptive and expressive communication abilities in the third most commonly used language in America. 



We are fortunate to live in a community with a school district that has the resources and institutional ability to offer our kids world class, cutting edge, 21st century educational programming that will foster tomorrow’s leaders. Kudos to our Curriculum Department for their hard work!


Sincerely, 

Christian Fusco

NPSD Board of School Directors

Term Expiration: 2025

Meeting Information

School Board Meeting Information

Meetings of the whole (Finance Committee; Worksession; Action) will be held in person at the Educational Services Center (ESC) located at 401 E. Hancock Street Lansdale, PA 19446 unless otherwise noted. Those who wish to make public comment at these in-person meetings must be present in person to do so. For residents who would like to pre-register to speak during the audience of citizens, please email the school board secretary at skrocksb@npenn.org at least 24 hours before the meeting. These meetings will be televised live and added to the library for later viewing on North Penn Television's (NPTV) YouTube Channel.


Committee meetings (Safe Schools; Facilities and Operations; Policy; and Education, Curriculum and Instruction) will be held virtually in an online format using Zoom, televised live and added to the library for later viewing on NPTV's YouTube ChannelIndividuals having difficulty accessing a virtual meeting may email meetings@npenn.org for assistance. This email address will be monitored throughout the course of virtual meetings and may be utilized by any person who wishes to raise an objection during a meeting pursuant to Section 710.1(c) of the Pennsylvania Sunshine Act. Objections, which will be noted for the record, must include the person’s name and the general nature of their objection.  

How to Watch Meetings
Residents can watch live on the NPTV YouTube Channel, North Penn News, or NPTV local Comcast Cable Channel 28 and Verizon FIOS-TV Channel 29.

A recording of this meeting will be available on the district website, the NPTV YouTube Channel, and will air on North Penn Television Comcast Cable Channel 28 and Verizon FIOS-TV Channel 29 for the next three business days at 12:30 pm and 7:30 pm.

How to View Meeting Agendas
Meeting agendas are published the week of the meeting and can be viewed online on BoardDocs. To view meeting agendas, visit BoardDocs and select the "Meetings" tab in the top right corner. From there, find and select the meeting, and then click "view agenda".

How to Participate in Virtual Meetings
Public comment will be available using Zoom. A link to make public comment will be available on our website prior to the start of the meeting.

When it is time for public comment, please use the “raise your hand” feature in the zoom webinar. We will take public comment in order that hands were raised. Please listen for your name when called upon for comment and unmute your microphone.

If you do not have access to zoom, please email your comments to _npschoolboard@npenn.org and it will be included in the board minutes.

Meetings in Review


Action


November 17, 7:00 pm

Upcoming Meetings


Worksession

December 5, 6:30 pm, ESC


Action

December 15, 7 pm, ESC


View 2022 Meeting Schedule

You Could Save Up to $731 through the NPSD Property Tax and Rent Rebate Program

Are you eligible? Do you know someone who is? Learn more and help us spread the word about this program!
Learn more & see if you're eligible

Student Recognition

NPHS students Sophia Choi and Ryan Huang received proclamations for their service to the community. Sophia and Ryan alerted a neighbor to a fire in the garage, giving the family time to evacuate and ensure everyone's safety. The students were honored at the board meeting by Dr. Bauer and the school board for their heroic actions. Thank you Sophia and Ryan for helping your neighbors and serving your community!

With the November action meeting held at the Hatfield township building, students from Pennfield Middle School stopped by to talk about the Where Everyone Belongs program and leadership training program. Students discussed initiatives to help all Pennfield students feel included and a part of the school community, as well as opportunities for students to become leaders at the school.

Committee Reports
Education/Curriculum/Instruction Committee

The ECI Committee met on November 1, 2022. At the meeting, the curriculum team presented the course changes and additions that will impact the 2023-24 Program of Studies for grades 10 through 12. Included in these changes is the reclassification of three Computer Science courses from the Mathematics department to the Technology and Engineering Department and name changes for two courses in the Music department. Also, there are seven courses being added to the Program of Studies including American Sign Language and two dual enrollment courses - one with the University of Pittsburgh and the other with Montgomery County Community College. In addition, two new Social Studies electives and two new Business electives will be offered. 

Watch Video Recording of Meeting

This committee will not meet in December. Its next meeting will be January 3, 2023 at 5:30 p.m. in a virtual format.

Chair:
Dr. Elisha K. Gee

Members:
Christian Fusco, Dr. Wanda Lewis-Campbell, Tim MacBain

Facilities and Operations Committee

The Facilities and Operations Committee met on Wednesday, October 26, 2022, in a virtual format. The Committee reviewed the following items to be moved to this evening’s action meeting for the Board’s consideration.


  • Two change orders for the Knapp Elementary School project
  • A design proposal for the brick cleaning, sealing and some restoration to Knapp Elementary School
  • Permission to advertise/seek pricing for the repair to General Nash and North Wales Elementary chillers and repair the air conditioning at Penndale Middle School's Auditorium.


The Committee was presented and discussed informational items, including:


  • Knapp Elementary project update
  • Update on the Healthcare Center
  • The 10 year Capital Project Plan
Watch Video Recording of Meeting

The next Facilities and Operations meeting is scheduled for Monday, November 28, 2022, at 7:00 p.m. and will be held in a virtual format. 

Chair:
Cathy Wesley

Vice Chair:
Jonathan Kassa
Members:
Juliane Ramić,
Tina Stoll

Finance Committee

At the November 9, 2022, Finance Committee meeting, which was an in-person meeting, the financial reports and budget transfers were reviewed in addition to the following items:

 

1. Tim Mirra from Zelenkofske Axelrod LLC presented the 2021-22 draft audit report. The draft audit report and the presentation are posted in BoardDocs. There were no findings with the audit. The final audit report is being prepared and will appear on the December Action meeting agenda.

 

2. Steve Skrocki reviewed the draft budget calendar for 2023-24. This item appears on tonight's agenda.

 

3. Steve Skrocki reviewed the proposed resolution not to exceed the Act 1 index for the 2023-24 fiscal year.  This option is available only to school districts that are certain the next year budget can be funded without increasing the real estate tax rate by more than the index and therefore without seeking approval for any index limit exceptions.  This item appears on tonight's agenda.

 

For informational items, Steve Skrocki reviewed the 2023-24 building-level budget allocations, the Moody's issuer profile score report, and provided an update on the "Here Comes The Bus" parent tracking app.

Watch Video Recording of Meeting

This committee will not meet in December. The next Finance Committee meeting is scheduled for January 10 at 6:00 p.m. at the ESC.

Chair:
Christian Fusco

Vice Chair:
Al Roesch

Members:
Committee of the Whole

NPSD Educational Foundation

The Foundation last met on October 18th at Northbridge where trustees toured the school and met with students and staff. It was the Foundation's first visit to Northbridge and we really enjoyed learning more about the incredible opportunities offered there. 

 

Curriculum Supervisor Nina Fenstermaker was asked to join the meeting to talk about the the district's Reading is Fundamental Program which recently lost its outside funding. The Foundation voted to approve supporting RIF for $13,000 in order to purchase the books needed to distribute to our kindergarten students throughout the year. We look forward to supporting this program for years to come. 

 

October was also our staff giving month called U-Knight to Inspire. I am thrilled to report that we raised more than $18,000 through this initiative. Thank you to North Penn staff who gave so generously to support our students.  

 

Also this month we learned of three major donors through the Educational Improvement Tax Credit Program. We are grateful to new funding from Hatboro Federal Savings and for many years now support from Quakertown National Bank and Univest. Funding from EITC has supported major initiatives in our schools including the planetarium, spatial computing and upgrades to North Penn Television. 

 

On November 18th we will review 52 mid-year grants, the most ever received this time of year. We have approved a budget of $25,000 for this round of proposals, but have been known to increase our budget when needed. 

 

The Foundation meets next in December. To learn more about all things Foundation related, please visit npennedfoundation.org or contact Christine Liberaski at the ESC.

Visit our Website
Board of Trustees Member:
Juliane Ramić

Policy Committee

Meetings for the Policy Committee have moved to the last Monday of the month. Therefore, the November meeting has not occurred but will take place on Monday, November 28th at 5:00 p.m. in a virtual format.  

Chair:

Al Roesch


Members:

Christian Fusco,

Tina Stoll

Safe Schools Committee

The Safe Schools Committee met on October 26, 2022 in a virtual format. Coordinator Brandon Rhone provided an update on Here Comes the Bus, middle school incidents and Bus Patrol. Install on First Student and North Penn busses has begun of Here Comes the Bus equipment. Polite schools have been identified and will begin the process of implementation. Brandon also advised that Bus Patrol is in contract language review by both parties. Finally a review of middle school incidents show the same as this time last year. 

Watch Video Recording of Meeting

The next Safe Schools Committee meeting will be held on November 28, 2022, at 5:45 pm and will be held in a virtual format.

Chair:
Jonathan Kassa

Members:
Dr. Wanda Lewis-Campbell,
Cathy Wesley